New economic council a sign Dr M unhappy with Cabinet? Untrue, Azmin says

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 12 — Datuk Seri Azmin Ali today sought to dismiss claims that Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s move to convene a new Economic Action Council implied the prime minister was unhappy with members of his administration.

“Not true,” Azmin told reporters when met at the sidelines of a Malaysia Airlines event this morning.

The economic affairs minister pointed out that the function of the council is to ensure the implementation of policies already laid out by the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government.

“This is to address issues concerning the well-being of the rakyat, rise in living costs, expenses.

“In Pakatan Harapan, we move collectively, decisions are made collectively. The council comprises different people with different expertise, all their input is important and we will use this to decide on actions to be taken,” he added.

Dr Mahathir’s aide and confidante, Datuk A Kadir Jasin, asserted this morning that the move suggested the prime minister was compensating for inadequacies among his Cabinet members.

Kadir said the government was already facing economic and financial challenges left by the defeated Barisan Nasional (BN) and must prepare for a global slowdown stemming from the US-China trade war, and should not also have to deal with underperforming ministers.

Malaysians were also growing disappointed with the performance of the PH administration, Kadir said when singling out Cabinet members and civil servants.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister’s Office announced the formation of the council comprising ministers and business leaders to tackle the economy and arrest the rising cost of living.